Happy
Birthday America! It is our Nation's 237th birthday and I
have no baseball to watch. I tried my best to make the tour schedule
perfect, but I was not able to find a way to catch a live baseball
game on July 4th. Rindler and I are now in Phoenix and
the Diamondbacks are not home until July 5th.

We
debated whether or not to catch a local rodeo, but with the
temperature approaching 110 degrees we wisely retreated to our cooled
hotel room to get a little rest. I took Rindler to the Phoenix
Seasons 52 restaurant so that he could take part in one of my
city-to-city rituals. For those who have been following me from the
beginning you may have noticed that in nearly every city that I have
been in I have eaten at the Seasons 52 restaurant in town. Aside
from the fact that the food is pretty tasty and the calorie intake is
relatively low; having a food spot in each town that I can count on
for a good meal is invaluable. With all of the planning that went
into this tour, I ran out of time when it came to researching food
options. Even spending 30 minutes searching online for some local
cuisine is time that should be spent driving, sleeping, writing,
recording or any number of other things that I need to squeeze into
each 24-hour day. Because of that, Seasons 52 is safe, good and
healthy. It is one less thing that I have in my head.

Arriving in Phoenix

After
our meal we headed to the Steele Indian School Park in Phoenix to
enjoy some fireworks. Now that the sun had thankfully set for the
day, the cool desert air wafted over us as the sky lit up with
explosions of color. Rindler and I, along with thousands of local
Phoenicians, all sat with our heads tilted upwards singing along to
the patriotic musical backdrop. If I couldn't be at a ball game,
this was the next best thing. Tonight successfully pumped me up for
the game tomorrow at Chase Field.

Latest Podcast

Rounding Third may be coming to an end, but a new baseball season brings a brand new podcast. In this, the final episode, I introduce you to The Clubhouse Podcast and talk a bit about my favorite ballparks.